"We know we look 18. Don't hold it against us."

Tonight I saw Sleeperstar and Green River Ordinance at Mercury Lounge!

I had never heard any of Sleeperstar's music prior tonight, nor had I ever seen them. When they first came out, I was amused by a number of things, ranging from how young they looked (I really thought the lead singer might still be in his mid-teens), how varied they looked (the drummer and bass player looked like they were in a different band than the other three) and how the lead singer was wearing a leather jacket with a sweatshirt hood sticking out despite the fact that it was already really hot in the room. They proceeded to sell me. Hardcore. They were so tight and energetic and their music was really easy to get into, so much so that I didn't want it to end. Chris, the lead singer, was ridiculously cute and charming, played guitar and keyboard and had a great voice and stage presence. He even confirmed during his charismatic banter that they were not as young as they looked (see subject line). Shaun the drummer almost looked like he was dancing on the kit, his movements were so fluid and entertaining to watch, even though he was also managing to bang the shit out of the things. At the end of the last song, Brandon the bassist ended up on the ground, lying the bass down and just plucking at it while falling over it. I was actually concerned for him a bit because he was just like, passing out onto it! But he got up when it was over and starting putting his stuff away, so I figured it was all just for the sake of a dramatic ending. They seemed super excited to have such a great reception and I was happy for them and eager to get their CD after the show.

GRO came out next! I've been listening to GRO for over a year and I still get confused by their names because everyone but Denton the drummer has a name with a "juh" sound. There's Josh the lead singer, Josh the guitar/mandolin player, Geoff the bassist and his brother Jamey the other guitarist. It may be weird, but I like knowing the individual's names, it just feels weird to refer to them by instrument! I think I am good now, though. We were almost in the front, right in front of Geoff, which was a good place to be! Josh looked a little nervous when he first came out but quickly warmed up and they were clearly excited to have such a full house and participating crowd. In just the second song, "Sleep It Off", Josh's mike fell apart and didn't work for almost an entire verse, which the audience carried as he fixed it. They played a bunch of faves, including that song, "Goodbye LA", "Getting Older", "Outside", "Come On" and their new song "Rise Up" which was written specifically for the Olympics and is being used in the coverage. It's so perfectly Olympian too! They're such a fun band, I love their sound so much. At the end of their set, they brought Sleeperstar back on stage to sing "With a Little Help From My Friends" and I love those chaotic all-band enders. There were ten guys on stage, everyone sharing mikes and playing random instruments and it's just super fun! GRO ended their set with an acoustic unplugged version of "On Your Own", one of my favorites of their songs. I love intimate shows like this because these kinds of songs always end up being a band/crowd sing-along and this was no exception. All five guys stood in a row at the edge of the stage and sang with just Josh's acoustic guitar, other Josh's mandolin ("what's Josh playing!" "That's a mandolin!" "It's cute!" "It's cute or I'm cute?") and some shakers. The crowd was a little timid to join in at first but when the chorus came around, everyone was full on singing with the band and it was so obvious that they were so psyched by it. They're doing fairly well these days but it still must be pretty awesome having a full room sing one of your songs with you, especially in New York! It's one of the reasons I love going to shows here!